Beverage maker Skinny Nutritional files for Chapter 11

Mike Armstrong, Inquirer Columnist

Skinny Nutritional Corp., the local flavored-water marketer that saw most of its board resign earlier this year, has filed a Chapter 11 petition to restructure its operations.

Now based in Bryn Mawr, the company listed total assets of $2.93 million and total debts of $6.01 million in documents filed in U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Philadelphia. Skinny Nutritional makes Skinny Water, which has been marketed as a zero-calorie, zero-sugar bottled water beverage.

In a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission, Skinny Nutritional stated that the "decision to seek protection under Chapter 11 was triggered" by an attempt by its New York-based lender, Trim Capital L.L.C., to foreclose on certain assets, including its portfolio of trademarks.

Skinny Nutritional said in a statement issued May 8 that Trim Capital failed to complete its financing obligations under an agreement which would have provided up to $15 million in funding. The lender provided only $1.27 million, the beverage maker said.

In January, three of the company's four board members resigned, filing letters with the SEC that criticized how Skinny Nutritional was being run by chairman and CEO Michael Salaman. The company, then based in Conshohocken, said it did not agree with the "characterizations" the former directors used in the letters.

Salaman said in that statement: "The company filed Chapter 11 to preserve value for the shareholders. In the absence of the reorganization filing, the company would be left without recourse. The loss of the trademarks would have been devastating to the company."

Skinny Nutritional has not released financial results since its second quarter of 2012 when it reported a net loss of $3.43 million on net sales of $2.59 million for the first six months of the year. As of June 30, it had a working capital deficiency of $4.29 million and a stockholder's deficit of $3.09 million.

Salaman said that the company "believes that future sales are promising. We see a future ... for the company and the Skinny brand."

Its shares are currently traded over the "pink sheets" over-the-counter market and are worth less than a penny.